Holocaust Commemoration in Southern Nevada

Each April, Jewish communities around the country commemorate the Shoah with educational programming reminding all how the targeting of Jews and other specific groups for persecution led to extermination and murder of almost 12 million people in eastern Europe between 1939 and 1945. Many programs honor local Holocaust survivors, as the words "Never Again" echo in our hearts.

In Las Vegas several programs invite the community to learn more and offer selections of reading and viewing material that will be referenced in their programs. On Sunday, April 15 at 3 p.m. at Temple Beth Sholom Pulizer Prize-Winning Investigative Reporter Eric Lichtblau is the guest speaker. He authored "The Nazis Next Door: How America Became a Safe Haven for Hitler's Men."

Midbar Kodesh Temple's Hazak group will present "Fanny's Journey," a gripping movie about Jewish children escaping the Nazis in France During WWII. The film, to be shown at noon Tuesday, April 17, is based on the true story of Fanny Ben-Ami. For reservations or more information contact Marv Abramson at 702.454.4848.

The Sperling Kronberg Mack Holocaust Resource Center, with a grant from Jewish Nevada, will present "Complicit," a film that chronicles the ill-fated journey of the SS St. Louis at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 29. The program will include a panel discussion with Robert Krakow, the creator of "Complicit" and Executive Director of The SS St. Louis Project. He will be joined by Tom Jacobson, a survivor of the SS St. Louis; UNLV historian Jeanne Holland and Boyd School of Law Immigration attorney Michael Kagan. The panel will be moderated by Rabbi Bradley Tecktiel. "Voyage of the Damned," a novel by Gordon Thomas, is a good historical reference for this story.

For more information on educational material, classes and discussions on all Holocaust related material contact Educational Consultant Myra Berkovits at The Sperling Kronberg Mack Holocaust Resource Center at reddave1@gmail.com.